In a revelation that directly contradicts President Nayib Bukele’s public narrative, a letter signed by El Salvador’s top finance officials confirms the government has not purchased any bitcoin since February 2025. The letter was disclosed as part of the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) first review of a $1.4 billion financing agreement, finalized earlier this year.

The document, released on July 15, was signed by Central Bank President Douglas Pablo Rodríguez Fuentes and Finance Minister Jerson Rogelio Posada Molina. It states, “the stock of Bitcoins held by the public sector remains unchanged.” Additionally, the letter confirms that wallet addresses—both hot and cold—used by the government have been submitted to the IMF for ongoing monitoring.

This finding starkly contrasts the claims of Bukele and El Salvador’s Bitcoin Office, which have repeatedly declared daily Bitcoin purchases since November 2022. According to the Bitcoin Office, the national bitcoin reserve contains approximately 6,242 BTC—valued around $737 million. Blockchain analytics firm Arkham has supported the claim, citing transaction records largely originating from hot wallets on Binance and Bitfinex.

Bukele has been vocal about continuing Bitcoin purchases despite the IMF agreement, which required the country to scale down its crypto activity. “It won’t stop now, and it won’t stop in the future,” he declared earlier on X.

However, the IMF report suggests the rise in bitcoin reserves may be due to internal wallet consolidations rather than new acquisitions. “Increases in Bitcoin holdings… reflect the consolidation of Bitcoin across various government-owned wallets,” reads a footnote in the IMF document.

Bitcoin Office Director Stacy Herbert, defending the country’s crypto stance, claimed in March that real purchases were ongoing. “Some ‘bitcoiners’ trust the IMF’s words over the blockchain,” she posted on X.

The IMF has clarified that these movements do not breach the financing agreement. However, with conflicting narratives and no official comment yet from the Bitcoin Office, questions remain about the true status of El Salvador’s bitcoin strategy.

The post El Salvador Halted Bitcoin Purchases Since February, IMF Letter Reveals appeared first on CryptoShrypto.

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Filed under: Bitcoin - @ July 20, 2025 6:18 pm